Links
Kayak Voyage to PNG
If you are interested in following the sea kayak voyage of the "Paluma"
from Townsville in Northern Queensland, Australia to Port Moresby (PNG) starting
on the 10th of August, 2003 and finishing whenever then start by visiting
the official website at --
http://www.users.bigpond.com/kayakkhan/Paluma_Voyage.html
PNG Currency
PNG Bank -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg
PNG Coins -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/coins/index.htm
PNG Notes -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/notes/index.htm
PNG Commemorative Coins -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/comm/index.htm
PNG Currency pictures -- http://www.giervalk.bravepages.com/PNG/pgn.html
Traditional Money -- http://www.michie.net/pnginfo/monibagi.html
and http://www.michie.net/pnginfo/monitabu.html
If you really want to find out what the PNG Kina is worth on the world market
then you can find a currency converter for most world currencies located at
http://www.michie.net/pnginfo/moni.html
- another currency converter, with a local flavour, is located at Papua New
Guinea Business and Tourism Directory http://www.pngbd.com.
PNGBD also has a good on-line schedule of passenger aircraft in PNG.
PNG Embassy - USA
The Embassy of PNG in the Americas -- http://www.pngembassy.org/default.htm
PNG Forest Conservation
The Forest Conservation Portal for Papua New Guinea can be found at -- http://www.forests.org/png/.
-- This is the web site to visit to find out the most recent Rainforest Conservation
News and Information about Papua New Guinea.
CRMF
Had the opportunity to visit the Goroka office of Christian
Radio Missionary Fellowship (CRMF) and have a chat with James recently.
This organisation is providing a valuable service to the Eastern highlands
province and in fact all provinces. In conjunction with DataNets in Port Moresby
they provide an Internet POP (Point of Presence) in Goroka as well as wireless
LAN access for the Institute of Medical Research and, I think, the University
of Goroka. They also supply Internet over HF (High Frequency) radio to areas
where there are no telephone lines. The HF service, heavily used by Missionaries
to keep in touch with what is going on at home, is available to everyone.
-- http://www.crmf.com
Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce
The Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce website is located at -- http://www.pomcci.org.pg
PNG Institute of Directors
The PNG Institute of Directors has revamped its website with the help of
an AESOP Volunteer, Peter Griffin. It is an excellent introduction to PNG
company law and related governance issues it can be found at -- http://www.pngid.org.pg
News Items
Travel Ban
How often have we heard this one before? Members of Parliament have been
banned from travelling overseas. The only ministers allowed would be the Prime
Minister and the Foreign Affairs Minister.
Fast Money Scam
The U-Vistract fast money scheme has surfaced yet again. This time the people
of East New Britain have been offered the promise of K300,000 for an investment
of K1,000. The money is supposedly being held overseas and the principal of
the scheme will travel overseas to bring the money back into the country as
soon as he has received enough money from gullible participants. This pyramid
scheme refuses to die.
Southern Highlands Teachers
Teachers in the Southern Highlands have threatened to walk off the job if
they do not receive their pay soon. The teachers have not been paid for two
fortnights.
TPA
The Tourism Promotion Authority (TPA) has a new head. Peter Vincent, a one-time
management cadet at Air Niugini, has been appointed as the Chief Executive
Officer with Eri Singin being appointed to a new deputy CEO position. Eri
has held down the fort for ages whilst a person was found for the position.
It is rumoured that industry experts are not happy with the appointment of
Mr. Vincent.
Is Parliament Broke?
Parliament is struggling to pay district support grants to Members of Parliament.
The MP's are also upset about the late payment of their salaries and delays
in paying car and housing allowances. These allowances are usually paid in
advance.
Kick Boxing
The Second Amateur Kickboxing Championships are being held at the Sir John
Guise Stadium in Port Moresby from the 24th to the 25th of May, 2003. The
main event will be a bout between PNG and Australian Kick boxers. The public
will be treated to a World Title Fight Exhibition match between Stanley Nandex
and Gurgan Ozkan.
Police Force
A man is dead after a confrontation with police at the six-mile police station
in Port Moresby. Several other civilians are in hospital suffering from various
wounds. The trouble started when a security company bashed an individual recently
near the airport. Relatives and friends of the individual fronted up at the
police station expecting police to mediate a compensation settlement but when
the police sent away the security company the supporters of the individual
assumed the police were siding with the security firm and a tense situation
followed leading to the death of the man.
Buluminski Highway
Sir Michael Somare has made a pledge to have the Buluminski Highway in New
Ireland sealed. This was at the request of Ian Ling-Stuckey, the Governor
of New Ireland Province.
Father Louie Ambane
The Governor of Chimbu Province has died in Port Moresby. Father Ambane from
Inga Village, Gembogl died of liver fibrosis in Port Moresby about noon Saturday
10th of May, 2003
Helicopter Crash
A helicopter owned by Pacific Helicopters has crashed near Lae. The passengers
all survived but unfortunately the pilot died in the crash. The helicopter
was chartered to the US Army Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii and
was on its way to a site of a World War II crash site near Kabwum. The team
had planned to do a survey of the area before moving personnel and equipment
to the site. It is believed that the pilot may have suffered from a medical
condition such as a stroke, during the flight.
Angau Hospital
It is hoped that the Morobeen Provincial Government will bail out the financial
strapped Angau Memorial Hospital in Lae. The Provincial Government is expected
to hand over an emergency payment of K50,000 to buy fuel for the boiler and
keep the morgue operational. The National Government has not been in a financial
position to give the hospital its first quarter budget allocation.
Goroka
Thanks to a grant, from the Canadian High Commission in Australia, rural
women in the Eastern Highlands Province will soon have somewhere to stay when
they visit Goroka. The High Commission via the Canada Fund has donated K77,740
to the Young Women's Christian Association to build five self-contained units
next to the YWCA hostel in Goroka. Women from the rural area will use the
accommodation when they come to attend YWCA training programs.
Rotary International
The Rotary Club of PNG will supply thousands of treated mosquito nets to
the flood affected areas of the East Sepik. The Rotarians drive against malaria
is to provide everyone in PNG with treated mosquito nets. Due to recent floods
malaria is on the rise along the Sepik.
Commander's Challenge
Soldiers are competing in a weeklong competition at Goldie River Barracks
to test their proficiency in handling weapons, first aid, communications and
navigation skills. This is the first time a military skills competition has
been held in the PNG Defence Force. The competition is being staged between
the first Battalion Royal Pacific Islands Regiment (1RPIR) based at Taurama
and the second Battalion (2RPIR) based at Moem Barracks in Wewak. The Aussie
Defence Force is assisting with logistics and the staging of the activities
during the competition.
Air Operating Certificate
The problem with Air Niugini registering its Boeing 767 in PNG has hopefully
been resolved. Earlier this year it was reported that the Civil Aviation Authority
in Australia (CASA) had refused to issue Air Niugini with operating certificates
for the smaller Fokker F28 fleet following non-compliance of safety measures
by the Civil Aviation Authority of PNG. It was mentioned at the time that
CASA would not allow the Boeing aircraft, currently registered in New Zealand,
to fly to Australia if it was registered in PNG.
Moresby Chemists
Four shops selling prescription medicine without the proper authority will
have to close down. The pharmacies within the TST group of shops have been
operating without a trained chemist on site. The shops have been warned not
to sell any "pharmacy only" medicine to the public.
Martyr's School
The Martyr's School in Oro province have started fundraising to buy computer
equipment. The school recently was promoted to be able to teach grade 11 and
12 but has not had funds to buy computers for the students. The former MP
for Sohe gave the school the new status as part of a political decision without
considering the consequences about funding.
West New Britain
A new judge has been appointed to serve as a resident judge in West New Britain
(WNB). This is the first resident judge for WNB in 28 years. The people of
WNB are planning a big function to welcome judge Justice Cosmas Bidar this
Sunday and Monday.
Bank Passbooks
The Bank South Pacific (BSP) has finally recognised that not all of its customers
have access to electronic banking in the remote areas of PNG. The CEO of the
bank announced recently that the passbook account would be re-introduced.
The bank has also increased interest on what was previously paid for having
money ion a passbook account as well as doing away with a minimum balance
on the accounts.
Sirinumu
The Koiari people say that K200,000 spent on fixing the road from Sogeri
to Sirinumu dam has been wasted and very little work has been done. They are
now questioning whether all the money was spent on the road or whether some
of it had been misappropriated.
Kina Exchange Rate
The kina might have a chance of reaching the 28 US cent mark sometime soon.
The last time the kina reached this level was in March this year when it peaked
at $US0.2805. Unfortunately this is due to the US Dollar weakening against
other currencies so there has not been any major gain against, for example,
the Australian Dollar.
Alotau Police
Courtesy of AusAID the police in Alotau now have a building with facilities
where they can hold regular meetings to discuss law and order problems and
other issues with the public. The building, worth K180,000, was opened recently
and houses two offices, a conference room and toilet facilities. It is hoped
that the opening of the building will allow the existing police station to
focus on police work.
Tambul
The Tambul Health Centre in the Western Highlands Province has had to resort
to transporting patients to the Mount Hagen Hospital using local Public Motor
Vehicles (PMV's). Supporters of the winning National Election candidate took
the health centre ambulance away from the centre in 2002. PMV's only operate
during daylight hours so any emergency cases during the night have to wait
until sunrise to be transported to Mount Hagen.
Air Niugini - Woes
This has come from a reader in Europe many miles from PNG -- As it has been
drawn to my attention that PX has developed a new and worldwide unique system
of preventing the travelling air passengers from the unwanted and most hated
negative side effects of air travel. This new system was successfully tested
on PX393/08May from Singapore to Port Moresby when the crew left the passengers
standing and stranded in Singapore after they decided to fly back to PNG without
any passengers ..
Well done PX that is how an airline can be brought back to profit .....
The official response from Air Niugini is that an investigation is underway.
Air Niugini - Special Fares
Some of the new fares that Air Niugini is offering local travellers can be
found below. There are various conditions to these special return fares so
it is recommended to visit your local travel agent or Air Niugini office to
find out what they are.
- Port Moresby - Lae (normally K677) K354
- Lae to Wewak - (K877) K454
- Lae to Rabaul - (K1135) K583
- Port Moresby to Buka (K1654) K842
- Port Moresby to Mount Hagen (K894) K477
Nonga Base Hospital
The senior specialist at Nonga Base Hospital in East New Britain has been
removed from the position. The hospital board took this form of action after
suspending him over an incident that happened in April. The board are not
commenting on what the incident was or the reason for the dismissal.
Go Karts
Go kart racing is back in Port Moresby after an absence of many years. The
karts are now going around a track set up at the Defence Force Air Transport
Squadron. The area is located on the other side of Jackson's airport to the
general aviation area. The next session is this Saturday the 17th of May at
around 2pm.
Miss PNG Red Cross
A new entrant in the Miss PNG Red Cross has put her name down for the charity
fundraising event. The Mineral Resources Development Company is sponsoring
Miss Cynthia Asi. Miss Asi works with L & A Construction as a receptionist.
Domestic Borrowing
The National Government has had to resort to borrowing from local banks to
help prop up the shortfall in estimated budget figures. This has had the effect
of increasing interest rates to almost double the rate for normal borrowers.
Australian Aid
The Australian Government has recently passed its budget. There were fears
that the amount of aid to PNG would be cut but Australia will still give about
K700 million to PNG next year to be distributed amongst many projects. One
of the projects that Australian Aid will continue to support will be help
with PNG's response to HIV/AIDS.
Telephone Costs
People in Australia who previously could phone PNG for AUD$0.85 a minute
are now being charged AUD$2.21 a minute. According to PNG Telikom this is
so that PNG Telikom can build and expand its network.
Digital Telephones
Digital Telephone fever has hit Port Moresby. All shops selling mobile phones
and "top up" cards for the service have been inundated with customers.
It is believed that the first bugs have appeared in the GSM system with equipment
failures happening. Some customers have also complained about the cost of
calls saying that they have only managed to get a few minutes from a K100
top up card. Rumour has it that the system was installed many years but the
system was not cutover due to the lack of a suitable customer billing system.
FAQ's
One of the questions asked recently at the http://www.michie.net/png_faqs
site was "what are the diameter of the PNG one and two toea coins".
The answer can be found at http://www.michie.net/pngnfo/moni.html
compiled from information located on the Bank of PNG web site -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg
Notes -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/notes/index.htm
Coins -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/coins/index.htm
Numismatics (Collectors Items) -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg/kinatoea/comm/index.htm
Corruption
The media has declared war on corruption in PNG. Several organisations have
advertised contact information so that if you see or hear of corrupt people
or activities you can have a place to report them.
Transparency International (PNG)
PO Box 591, Port Moresby
Phone 320 2182 Fax 320 2189
email -- tipng@daltron.com.pg
web -- http://www.transparencypng.org.pg
Ombudsman Commission of PNG
PO Box 852 Boroko
Ph 325 9955 Fax 320 9220
email -- ombudspng@datec.com.pg
Media Council of PNG
PO Box 344 Boroko
Phone 320 1994 Fax 320 1956
email -- pngcorruption@hotmail.com
Singing Dogs
The New Guinea Singing Dog (NGSD) was discovered by the outside world in
1957 when the first pair was brought down from the New Guinea Highlands to
the Taronga Zoo. Sydney, Australia. -- http://www.newguineasingingdoginternational.com/
About 100 New Guinea singing dogs exist in captivity but no one knows how
many exist in the wild if any! It seems that only anecdotal evidence is available.
It is possible that some dogs may exist to the west of Wau, Morobe Province
in the mountains. Many people from this area remember seeing and hearing these
dogs in the past. It is believed that singing dogs have been in PNG for over
5000 years. Some are reported as being able to climb trees. There are singing
dogs kept in South Carolina USA.
PNG Media
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